Alfond Sports Arena

Harold Alfond Sports Arena
Construction
"The Alfond"


Location	College Ave Orono, Maine 04473
Owner	University of Maine
Operator	University of Maine
Capacity	5,712 (basketball) 5,125 (hockey)
Surface	200 x 85 ft (hockey)
Broke ground	1976
Opened	February 5, 1977
Expanded	1991, 1998, 2011
Construction cost	$1.6 million^[1] ($8.04 million in 2023 dollars^[2])
Architect	Daniel Tulley Associates^[3]
Tenants
Maine Black Bears men's and women's ice hockey

Harold Alfond Sports Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Orono, Maine, United States. The arena opened in 1977. It is home to the University of Maine Black Bears ice hockey teams. It is recognizable for its distinctive hyperbolic paraboloid architecture. The multi-angular roof design can also be found at Pavilion at Villanova University, the Brown University Smith Swim Center and the Flynn Recreation Complex at Boston College. It is named for Harold Alfond, a longtime Maine booster, whose name also adorns Alfond Sports Stadium, the school's main outdoor stadium.

It was expanded in 1992 from its original capacity of 3,800 in order to accommodate more spectators and bring the basketball team back from its temporary home at the Bangor Auditorium. More skyboxes have been added since then, so the arena's capacity has been reduced. As of the 2022-2023 season, the capacity was 5,125 for hockey.^[4] The arena includes the Bear Necessities Fan Shop and the Maine Hockey Hall of Fame.

The Grateful Dead played in The Alfond on April 19, 1983. Scott Hamilton's Stars on Ice opened in Alfond Sports Arena in 1986. Hillary Clinton appeared at the arena in 1994. It takes two hours to make the transition from basketball to hockey, and about 2½ from hockey to basketball. New, energy-efficient lighting was installed in late 2006 because of previous power outages and too much electricity consumption. A new scoreboard was installed during the summer of 2008. A new basketball floor was purchased in late 2009 to replace the original floor first used in 1992. A $4.8 million renovation project began in May 2011. The renovation included a new ice system along with dehumidifier equipment, new dasher boards and glass, and new lower-level seating.^[5]

The Dalhousie Memorial Arena (1982–2012) at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada was inspired by the Alfond Sports Arena, which university president Henry Hicks reportedly admired.^[6]

References

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^ "Crowd Views Dedication". Bangor Daily News. November 18, 1977. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ "Dedicate New Arena". Lewiston Evening Journal. November 15, 1977. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
^ "2022-23 MIH Media Guide (PDF)" (PDF). University of Maine Athletics. Retrieved 2023-01-08.
^ Construction Progressing At Alfond Arena Archived 2011-08-18 at the Wayback Machine GoBlackBears.com, July 13, 2011
^ "Dalhousie Memorial Arena". Dalhousie University Archives. Archived from the original on 26 January 2010.

External links

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v t e Maine Black Bears men's basketball
Venues	The Pit (1935–1989; 2011–present) Bangor Auditorium (1989–1992) Alfond Arena (1992–2013) Cross Insurance Center (2013–2023)
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25

v t e Maine Black Bears women's basketball
Venues	The Pit at Memorial Gymnasium (1935–1989; alternate, 2011–present) Bangor Auditorium (1989–1992) Alfond Arena (1992–2013) Cross Insurance Center (2013–2022)
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

v t e Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey
Playing venues	Alumni Field Rink (1922–1924) Alfond Arena (1977–present)
Coaches	Cuddy Murphy (1922–1923) Stanley Wallace (1923–1924) Jack Semler (1977–1984) Shawn Walsh (1984–1995, 1996–2001) Greg Cronin (1995–1996) Tim Whitehead (2001–2013) Red Gendron (2013–2021) Ben Barr (2021–Present)
Seasons	1922–23 1923–24 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Conference affiliations	ECAC 2 (1977–1979) ECAC Hockey (1979–1984) Hockey East (1984–present)
Rivalries	New Hampshire Boston University
Culture & lore	Florida College Hockey Classic 42–1–2
All-time leaders	Jim Montgomery (301 Points) Jean-Yves Roy (108 Goals) Garth Snow/Scott King (66 Wins)
National championships	1993 1999
Frozen Four appearances	1988 1989 1991 1993 1995 1999 2000 2002 2004 2006 2007
NCAA Tournament appearances	1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1995 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2012 2024
Conference Tournament titles	Hockey East: 1989 1992 1993 2000 2004
Hobey Baker winners	Scott Pellerin (1992) Paul Kariya (1993)
University of Maine Orono, ME

v t e Hockey East
Men	Boston College Eagles (Conte Forum) Boston University Terriers (Agganis Arena) Maine Black Bears (Alfond Arena) Merrimack Warriors (Merrimack Athletics Complex) New Hampshire Wildcats (Whittemore Center) Northeastern Huskies (Matthews Arena) Providence Friars (Schneider Arena) UConn Huskies (Toscano Family Ice Forum) UMass Minutemen (Mullins Center) UMass Lowell River Hawks (Tsongas Center) Vermont Catamounts (Gutterson Fieldhouse)
Men's Seasons	1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Women	Boston College Eagles (Conte Forum) Boston University Terriers (Walter Brown Arena) Holy Cross Crusaders (Hart Center) Maine Black Bears (Alfond Arena) Merrimack Warriors (J. Thom Lawler Rink) New Hampshire Wildcats (Whittemore Center) Northeastern Huskies (Matthews Arena) Providence Friars (Schneider Arena) UConn Huskies (Toscano Family Ice Forum) Vermont Catamounts (Gutterson Fieldhouse)
Related articles	Lamoriello Trophy List of champions: Men / Women Tournament sites: TD Garden

44°54′16.34″N 68°40′25.02″W / 44.9045389°N 68.6736167°W / 44.9045389; -68.6736167

See also

References

External links